Senior Russian general reportedly dismissed after vanishing in wake of Wagner mutiny

By AP 23 August 2023, 2:02 pm

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File: Then-deputy Russian military commander in Ukraine Gen. Sergei Surovikin records his appeal against armed rebellion at an unknown location, June 24, 2023. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

Gen. Sergei Surovikin, a former commander of Russia’s forces in Ukraine who was linked to the leader of an armed rebellion, has been dismissed from his job as chief of the air force, according to Russian state media. The report today comes after weeks of uncertainty about his fate following the short-lived uprising.

Surovikin has not been seen in public since armed rebels marched toward Moscow in June, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of the Wagner mercenary group. In a video released during the uprising, Surovikin urged Prigozhin’s men to pull back.

During his long absence, Russian media have speculated about Surovikin’s whereabouts, with some claiming he had been detained due to his purported close ties to Prigozhin.

Russian state news agency RIA Novosti, citing an anonymous source, reports that Surovikin has been replaced as commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces by Col. Gen. Viktor Afzalov, who is currently head of the main staff of the air force.

The agency frequently represents the official position of the Kremlin through reports citing anonymous officials in Russia’s defense and security establishment.

The Russian government has not commented on the report, and The Associated Press is not able to confirm it independently.

Russian daily newspaper RBC wrote that Surovikin is being transferred to a new job and is now on vacation.

The Wagner uprising posed the most serious challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s 23-year rule and reports circulated that Surovikin had known about it in advance.